196 



II.OWl'.RS ()!•■ THE SEA-COAST 



Ct-ntaui')' is a short, crcci plain, rc-pt-au-clK' tli\iiliii^ iiuo two al)C)\'e, 

 with a single stem below, s(|uare-stalke(l, with ohlon^^ e_s^^'-sliape(l, 

 lance-shapecl leaves, wiili luinuioiis par.illel \-eins, and smooth, the 

 upper leaves acute. There are numerous radical leaves. 



The llower is red or pink, with two kinds of style, and horne in a 

 panicled cor\nib ot llowers, open in Inu' weather onlw The tlowers 

 are nearly stalkless. Tiie calyx, s lid, is less than the corolla, which is 



tuhul.ir, and ihe llowering 

 stems are repeatedly divided. 

 The 5 lobes of the corolla 

 are ov'al. Tiie lal(-ral tlowers 

 are stalketl, or stalkless bo 

 iwt-en two llcjral k'a\'es. The 

 capsule is slender. 



The plant is about 6 in. 

 to a foot in height. The 

 llowers bloom in July and 

 August, lastino' 4 or 5 days, 

 and are open from 5-7 a.m. 

 up till midday, closing if it 

 rains. It is a deciduous, 

 herbaceous plant, propagated 

 by .seed. 



The anthei's and stigma 

 arc mature at the same time, 

 and the flower is somewhat 

 heterostylic, with pollen of 

 different sizes. The tlowers 

 contain no hone\ , but are 

 visited by Lepidoptera. The 

 spiral stamens, like the twisting of the stigma in Silene^e (which are 

 pollinated by Lepidoptera), seem to be an adaptation to secure its 

 being touched by the thin proboscis. At first the stamens and pistil 

 are tar apart, l)ut approach later. Probably some sott tissue is pierced 

 by the insect with the sharp points at the tip of the proboscis to get at 

 the sweet .sap. The flower is visited by the Humming-bird Hawk 

 Moth, Maci'Oglossa stc/latai'uin, Agrotis proniiba, and other Lepido- 

 ptera, Bees, and by the Dipterous Empis. 



The capsule is divided by septa, and when ripe the parts break 

 away and fall around the parent plant, allowing the seeds to 

 escape. 



Ce.NTALRV [Ccnlau 



